This was of course grown for Movember 2011, to raise awareness of men’s health issues and to raise funds for the Cancer Society and Mental Health Foundation here in New Zealand. The glorious mo you are gazing at was one of 13,112 officially registered mo’s in NZ, and raised $470 (to date) towards the NZ total of more than $1.2M out of a global total exceeding $132M.

So, to all my supporters and anyone else who donated to the cause – thank you for your support! Your generous donations make a month of mo growin’ well worthwhile.

Finally, if you missed out and still want to contribute, donations are still being accepted and you can still sponsor my mo via:

Movember (the month formerly known as November) is a moustache growing charity event held during November each year that raises funds and awareness for men’s health.

At the start of Movember guys register with a clean shaven face. The Movember participants, known as Mo Bros, have the remainder of the month to grow and groom their Mo, raising money along the way to benefit men’s health – specifically prostate cancer and depression in men.

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Here in New Zealand, funds raised for Movember go to the Cancer Society of New Zealand and the Mental Health Foundation of New Zealand and in 2010 over 9,500 New Zealand Mo Bros and Mo Sistas got on board, raising $1 Million.

Personally, this will be my 6th year of mo-growing and I’m hoping to match if not exceed my 2010 fundraising total of $595 (which broke my 2009 total of $565).

Why am I doing this? Through my mo growing I hope to raise both awareness and funds by no doubt generating some laughs and sparking conversations. Here’s a few stats,

1 in 6 men will be diagnosed with prostate cancer in their lifetime

This year 240,890 new cases of the disease will be diagnosed

1 in 2 men will be diagnosed with cancer in their lifetime

24% of men are less likely to go the doctor compared to women

So how can you donate to the cause? Great question and I’m glad you asked! The easiest way is to hit my Mo Space page and click the big DONATE TO ME button. If you prefer, you can also post a cheque or flick me some cash and I’ll process a payment for you – get in touch and I’ll help out.

…and thank you to everyone who generously donated to support men’s health via the Cancer Society and Mental Health Foundation. Donations via my mo again exceeded $500 (placing me inside the top 200 as of Dec 1!) which most certainly made the mo growin’ worthwhile. As for the nationwide effort, the Movember site currently has the NZ total standing at more than $750,000.

Movember the 30th! And so to the final famous mo in my daily mo series for the month. Since I started with an NZ legend, it’s only proper that I finish with another one!

Mo #30: Willie Apiata

Bill Henry “Willie” Apiata VC is a Corporal in the New Zealand Special Air Service and is the first and only recipient of the Victoria Cross for New Zealand – received for bravery under fire in Afghanistan in 2004. In addition to being a celebrated hero, he was also voted NZ’s most trusted person in 2008.

You can donate to Movember to support the Cancer Society and the Mental Health Foundation of New Zealand via my Mo Space page.

I guess it’s only fitting to feature Merv Hughes since my own mo has been likened to Merv’s by colleagues! Merv was an Australian cricketer in the late 80’s and early 90’s playing 53 Tests and 33 ODI’s. If you remember seeing him in action you’ll no doubt recall he had a large, ah, presence on the field! 😉 – a point not lost in Wikipedia: “Hughes was a notorious consumer of alcohol and food… having always been rather overweight”. Gotta love the “see also” entry there: “Sledging (cricket)”. 😀

You can donate to Movember to support the Cancer Society and the Mental Health Foundation of New Zealand via my Mo Space page.

Just three to go in my daily mo series for Movember and today it’s a pirate!

Mo #28: Johnny Depp as Captain Jack Sparrow

Captain Jack Sparrow is a character in the Pirates of the Caribbean film series portrayed by Johnny Depp. If you come across this Pirate Lord of the Caribbean Sea, bear in mind he’s wanted dead for a bounty of 10001 Guineas! For his portrayal of the pirate captain, Depp has been nominated for Academy, BAFTA and Golden Globe awards for best actor.

You can donate to Movember to support the Cancer Society and the Mental Health Foundation of New Zealand via my Mo Space page.

Movember the 27th and today’s mo bearer goes by the nickname The Big Yin:

Mo #27: Billy Connolly

Scottish born Billy Connolly is best known as a stand-up comedian, but is also and musician and actor. In 2003 he received a Lifetime Achievement award from BAFTA and a a CBE (Commander of the Order of the British Empire) in the Queen’s Birthday Honours List.

You can donate to Movember to support the Cancer Society and the Mental Health Foundation of New Zealand via my Mo Space page.